Best LED Lantern For Power Outages 2018 – Reviews & Buyer’s Guide

In our modern life, electricity has become an indispensable part of our daily activities. Everything we do depends on power in one way or another way, so it’s easy to understand how frustrating it can be when the power goes off.

Whether it is at home or during your camping trip at night, a proper light source is the first thing you’ll need to secure in the event of a blackout. Therefore, keeping a LED lantern can be extremely useful in such situations.

The only question that should be asked is: how do we find the best LED lantern for power outages? In the next part of our post, we will walk you through how to find the best LED lantern for both your outdoor and home emergencies. We will also give you our top picks for the best LED lanterns that even the most pickiest users will approve.

How To Choose The Best LED Lantern For Power Outages

Having a LED lantern is a brilliant idea to cope with power outages. But not everyone knows how to choose the best one among the hundreds of lanterns available out there. Don’t be fooled by the fancy looks of the lantern or the sweet promises of the manufacturers.

A truly great LED lantern is not necessarily the most expensive or the most beautiful one but rather a well-functional one. But how do you spot the best LED lantern?

There are certain factors that you will need to consider to find the best LED lantern for power outages. A good LED lantern is an essential household item that should be included in every family’s emergency kit. We have summarized below the essential factors that will help you spot the best LED lanterns among the rest. Let’s start, shall we?

1. Brightness level

The first and also the most important factor for a LED lantern is how bright it is. You would not want to end up wasting tons of money for a LED lantern that gives off the weak and dim light, would you?

The level of brightness can be determined by the number of lumens put off, so you may notice that every LED lantern specification always includes the number of lumens, for example, 140 or 190 lumens.

The higher the lumens, the brighter the light will get. Generally speaking, 250 lumens is more than enough light to read or find your way around while less than 80 lumens of light can be too dark to function.

2. Runtime

Another important factor to consider is how long the lantern can run on its fully charged batteries. Nobody knows how long the power outage is going to last, so it’s best to opt for the LED lanterns that can run for at least 20 hours continually. Try to find a LED lantern that can run as long as you’ll need.

3. Adjustability

The third thing to consider is whether a lantern offers adjustable modes of light or not. Preferably, a good LED lantern should allow you to change the lighting intensity from low to high depending on your wish.

By being able to adjust the light, you will be able to save more power and get the lantern running for longer than expected. Rest assured that most good - quality LED lanterns offer adjustable light to suit different activities by users, so make sure to test all of the light modes before you buy.

4. Price

A decent LED lantern should not cost you more than 50 bucks. In fact, there are many good LED lanterns at very affordable prices. For around 20 bucks, you can get a pretty good deal already. The more features the lantern offers, the higher the cost will get.

Some high quality LED lanterns include plenty of fancy features such as carrying handles and hooks, remote controls, fancy designs or extreme water resistance. These features are not a must, however, depending on your need and budget, you can select the one with the features you’d love.

Below is our list of the top 5 LED lanterns that offer great values and functions. If you are looking to buy a LED lantern quickly, then feel free to choose from our recommended lanterns below, and you won’t be disappointed.

This amazing portable LED lantern is so much more than just a light source. It is a fantastic lantern that can also act as a flashlight when you go trekking or camping or even when a hurricane hits and there’s a blackout.

The lantern is incredibly lightweight with a carrying strap for maximum portability. It also comes with pre-installed six 1.5V AA batteries and a user manual. In the flashlight mode, you can expect it to last for 20 hours of continuous use or 12 hours in the lantern mode. Isn’t that impressive?

PROS

The lantern is safe to use without getting heated after prolonged usage

The lantern offers great value for the price with long bright light and powerful batteries

The lantern is very user-friendly, even kids can handle it

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It is also very lightweight and can be turned into a flashlight in an instant

CONS

There is no light shield to direct light in the direction you want

The lantern doesn’t do well in unfavorable weather conditions such as rain as the moisture can creep inside the bottom of the lantern and cause corrosion to the batteries.

The lantern offers bright light for indoor use but not wide enough for outdoor use at night

Coleman is a prominent brand in creating high-quality outdoor gears and LED lanterns are no exception. This MicroPacker Compact Battery Lantern manufactured by Coleman is a remarkable lantern that features a lightweight design yet a powerful capacity.

This lantern can easily be converted into a flashlight with a snap and what’s more terrific is how powerful and durable this lantern is. It offers up to 92 hours of continuous light and is expected to last a lifetime.

PROS

The lantern is super lightweight and compact, and you can easily carry it with you anywhere you plan to hike

The lantern runtime is very long in comparison with other models

The lantern offers incredibly bright light, and the light direction can be adjusted

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The lantern lifespan is impressive as it promises to last a lifetime

CONS

The lantern is a bit pricier compared to other lantern models

This lantern is not moisture-proof, which means it does not come with any rubber lining around its battery input to prevent moist from corroding the batteries

If the above Coleman MicroPacker Lantern is too small for your need, then we have a bigger one for you here, and it’s none other than the Coleman Quad LED lantern Special Edition.

This Coleman lantern model retains most of the prominent features expected of Coleman products including high-quality materials and strong performance.

This lantern consists of 4 individual light panels and works on 8 D-Cell batteries. The lantern’s runtime is quite satisfactory for any camper or hiker, with the maximum runtime of 75 hours. The LEDs are extremely durable while completely safe to touch.

What’s cool about this lantern is you can take the panel lights off the base to use individually. So practically it’s buy-one-get-four, which is a pretty good deal, isn’t it?

PROS

The lantern generously offers bright and comfortable light

The lantern features four separate and detachable lights, which further enhances its lighting power, so it’s a fantastic option for power outages as well as night outdoor use

The lantern is quite durable and can survive bad weather

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The lantern is water resistant, so no more worries about moisture or battery corrosion with this one

CONS

This lantern is quite heavy and bulky to carry, so if you are looking for a compact lantern, opt for another one

Despite having four separate light panels, the lantern only has one On-off switch, and sadly there is no way to adjust the light brightness

It can be tricky to recharge all of the lantern batteries

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The lantern base is large yet tight, which makes it challenging to install and replace batteries

The Rayovac Sportsman LED lantern is another impressive LED lantern that every camper will love. It offers fantastic brightness with 240 lumens, and its brightness level can be adjusted into three modes: low, high and strobe.

The lantern employs 3-D batteries which offer up to 40 hours running in high mode and 90 hours running in low mode.

What also makes this Reyovac Sportsman LED lantern a must-have is its durability and water resistance, so it’s worth keeping a spare Rayovac lantern just in case of power outages or outdoor activities at night.

PROS

The lantern is of the right size for carry-along yet able to provide sufficient light during a power failure or a night trip

The lantern is well-designed with three modes of brightness to choose from - and if you turn it on the low mode you will be able to save more power

The lantern is highly durable and water resistant

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The lantern can run on either AA or D batteries, which allows more flexibility for battery options when you are in a hurry

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The lantern is lightweight and compact for optimal storage

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The lantern offers an easy-find function in which green light will flicker every 5 seconds when the lantern is off

If you want to find a LED lantern that works well with a fashionable look, look no further than this LED Lantern by Blazin’ Bison. The lantern itself offers an exclusively camouflage patterned design which will appeal greatly to campers or hikers.

Apart from its extravagant look, the lantern is also an awesome solution to both power outages at home and night trips in the wild thanks to its bright yet comfortable illumination.

The lantern is made of water-resistant plastic with rubber for convenient handling. Its power capacity is also formidable as it can run up to 140 hours with only three D batteries, so don’t be fooled by its small compact look.

You can easily carry this thing around or hang it nearby with its S hook. I am telling you, as a seasoned camper, it’s almost impossible not to love this lantern.

PROS

Despite the small size, this lantern gives off bright light - you can say it’s as bright as the daytime

You can set the level of brightness with this lantern from high to low and vice versa

This lantern is simple to use and easy to find in the dark with its pulsing function

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The lantern’s runtime is amazing even in long power outages

CONS

Unfortunately, you can’t adjust the direction of the light with this lantern

Final Thoughts

Whether you are looking for a backup plan for power failure or a reliable light source when camping at night, being able to find the best LED lantern for power outages can be especially useful. There are many types and models of LED lanterns out there, and it can be a challenge to find the right one for your need.

But with our buying guide and our recommendations above, we are confident that you will be able to know what to expect and choose the best LED lantern for your intention.

HikerTrack is a personal blog about outdoor activities. Through this site, I want to share with you the inspiration and motivation to expose yourself to the world and let the world reveal itself to you. Travelling offers you the experience you would never forget.

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